Gambling affords the proper metaphor here; I will lay my cards on the table. I believe that the prophet John, just like the Apostle Paul (2 Cor. 12:1; Gal. 1:12; 2:2; Eph. 3:3; Acts 16:9; 18:9), the Apostle Peter (Acts 10:17), gifted believers (1 Cor. 14:26, 30), and followers of Jesus (Matt. 17:9; Lk. 24:23; … Continue reading Revisiting Literalism in Prophecy ~~ The Inspiration of Imagination
The New Creation in Revelation 21-22, Summary & Musical Remix of Stories in the book of Acts
Next post is Guest Post ~~~ you will not want to miss it!Post 07 [Whew!, the last one]SummaryTonight I have not wanted to spend my time illustrating John’s imagery and teachings against the important backdrop of Second Temple Judaism or against the backdrop of important sources from the Graeco-Roman world. Although I do enjoy doing … Continue reading The New Creation in Revelation 21-22, Summary & Musical Remix of Stories in the book of Acts
The New Creation in Revelation 21-22, Part 05
Post 05New Perspectives on the Heavenly JerusalemMany Christian hymns of an eschatological emphasis have used the language of John’s picture of the New Jerusalem extensively, a Jerusalem situated in the very heart of the new heaven and earth. In the past generation especially, there has been increased momentum for questioning whether John intended his picture … Continue reading The New Creation in Revelation 21-22, Part 05
The New Creation in Revelation 21-22
Greetings! I’ll skip the chitchat and move to these 2 important points. 1. My hiatus of not posting regularly during the last half of 2013 comes from the confluence of sunspots, climate change, and premature hibernation. But I am back for a while now, deo volente. 2. My commentary is providing some speaking opportunities. … Continue reading The New Creation in Revelation 21-22
Harriet Tubman, MLK, Jesus, John, and Thoughts about Extremism
I confess that I debated with myself, but not for long, whether to use the term extreme/extremism in this post. Looking around on the internet it is clear that there are far more quotations and opinions that speak disparagingly about extremism than speak in favor of it. I even remember (precocious youth that I was) … Continue reading Harriet Tubman, MLK, Jesus, John, and Thoughts about Extremism
The Enchantment of Assimilation
The history of Israel, documented by both the prophetic and narrative texts, leaves little doubt that assimilation to the surrounding idolatrous values and culture was an easy path for most of God’s people. If Jesus’ own perceptions are to be trusted, and they are, then he also detected the almost inevitability of this when he … Continue reading The Enchantment of Assimilation
Molding Citizens for the Kingdom of God 